Offices

Office Inspiration - Home and Small Business

The Need:

Create a multi‑purpose office for home and small business use. This space is in full view upon entry into the home from the front foyer. The family uses the space for their personal home office and small business office.

Classic elegance, warm colors, and a beautiful aesthetic were desired to align with pieces the client already owned. The design needed to incorporate two family‑inherited chairs and a family‑inherited cabinet, and space in the center for a custom table. The cabinet provided additional storage for family keepsakes, such as a large collection of heirloom banks, along with their growing collection of books and the necessary office supplies and business documents.

The Solution:

Space planning determined the layout. Consideration was given to the large window on the front‑facing wall, the French doors into the office, the placement of the large custom table at the center, and the furniture selected to house the desktop monitor, printer, lamps, books, antique banks, and added storage. All pieces had to allow for ample open space and movement.

A family‑inherited walnut cabinet with antique brass hardware and two black‑and‑gold chairs were the starting point, along with the existing grey velvet curtains layered with white sheers on a black iron rod with ball finials. The client wanted classic white furniture, black countertops, and black hardware to complement the grey walls, white trim, and glass French doors. The existing dark hand‑scraped hardwood flooring and the walnut cabinet with antique brass hardware grounded the space with warmth.

A trestle base was purchased unstained, then stained to complement the flooring, and paired with a remnant piece of granite cut to size for the table. A rug in muted shades of cream, grey, and pale blue was placed beneath the table. A few prints from the client’s travels were enlarged and placed in black frames with white matting, two from Italy and two from Greece. A decorative carved wooden object was placed by the desk to introduce natural texture and bring the warm tones across the space. A black tray was added to display a small collection of wooden safari animals, a family heirloom, along with other collected pieces.

The bookcases were filled with the client’s books and some of the banks, while others were stored below to be rotated in and out on occasion. Inside the lower cabinets, bins were used for bulkier items, and containers were added to organize collectibles, keepsakes, warranty information, and user guides for appliances and tools, along with file folders for important family documents and separate business documents. Labels were added to the clearly defined bins, with others to be added once categories are finalized.

Reuse of Materials:
Being sustainably conscious, we always recommend saving items that can be repurposed within the home. In this office, a small black chandelier was moved from the primary bathroom after the lighting in it was updated; the client still liked it, and its color and size were perfect for the office. A dimmer was added. A Parapluie Revel poster the client had hung in an upstairs hallway was moved to the office as a prominent feature, serving as a reminder of a beloved musical, the film Singing in the Rain. A red vase the client already owned was placed on the desk and used to display fallen feathers gathered from the wild turkeys that frequent their backyard, reminiscent of quills used in the past, with the red pulling from the poster title above the desk.

Note:

Products and Sources Utilized in this Project are below.

Products and Sources Utilized in this Project:

1. Wood Base: Locally sourced in Jacksonville; stain purchased at Lowe’s to complement the flooring

2. Granite Top: Locally sourced in St. Augustine; remnant cut to specifications provided and delivered

3. Furniture and Countertops: IKEA in Jacksonville; white kitchen cabinets and drawers with soft‑close doors and drawers, open bookcases, and black countertops

4. Accessories:

  • IKEA: Office chair, black picture frames with white mats, grey fabric bins

  • Amazon: Cabinet and drawer hardware

  • HomeGoods: Black tray and decorative carved wooden object

  • Lowe’s: Crown molding, wood blocks, and brackets; color‑matched bookcase white with the paint department, painted crown, and installed on each bookcase to elevate the cabinets to look like furniture; brackets added to secure each cabinet to the wall for safety

  • Costco: Containers and bins

  • Custom Printed Labels: Client files and bins for keepsakes, collectibles, appliances, and tools